by Tobias Roote
Once they got into space they would deal with the rebels. These ships only represented the first thrust of a many-pronged approach.
He saw the silvery glint of the Gravjet as it arrived in from the USA. He looked at his watch, one hour and forty minutes. A record, the new drives they had designed on the back of the Ferris ones were working a treat. He continued to watch as the pencil thin craft landed on the flattened surface beyond the shipyards. The passengers were already disembarking. Several ‘fliers’, the name they had given the anti-grav taxis, were hovering close by the ship.
One detached itself and headed towards the shipyard. That’ll be Zeke, Frank thought, I’d best go meet him at the gate.
He walked down to the main gate entrance. The fliers had a stop there, out of the way of the C-Grav’s, the cargo transporters, that shifted raw materials and finished sections around.
He could see the lad, was he only a lad ? thought Garner. He definitely wasn’t ageing at all and, if anything, he looked fitter and leaner than ever. The blessed curse of Ferrazine in his system, no doubt.
Then he had it. Zeke’s hair was growing, finally. He now sported a silvery thin, but definitely growing, mop of hair on his head.
Garner laughed as Zeke stepped off the Flier and moved to greet him. He was smiling, looking healthy and unconcerned while holding a fairly chunky case alongside him that was supported by grav-braces.
They were the latest fad.
Nobody needed to carry anything heavy. They just strapped a grav-brace to it, or three or four of them. They were manufactured and set to suspend at a certain height from the ground and would only work with a maximum weight. You then just pushed it around with no effort at all. Garner had seen ninety year old women pushing stuff around with the tip of a gnarled finger. It was beautiful to behold.
“Hi Frank. How’s the Pacific treating you ?”
“Not bad, Zeke, not bad. You’re looking good, the new eyebrows suit you.” Garner appraised the other new addition. Zeke laughed.
“Yes, I finally figured out that all I needed to do was tell my hair to grow and it did. I didn’t choose the colour though, I guess that’s something I still have to learn.”
That was the thing with Zeke, he wasn’t fazed, at all, by the power he had over his body and the abilities he had developed. Zeke read from the reports that things like that were entirely possible, like growing a hand back, or clearing scar tissues, just by thinking it into being over a period of time and that was that. He would read it, try it, then he would just go back to doing stuff the normal way. If there was ever someone who didn’t need the powers he had inherited from the Ferrazine, Zeke was that person.
“So, what’s the first port of call on the list. You said you had something really special to show me. I’m intrigued, it got me here a full day earlier than scheduled, I’m horny for some excitement. Are we doing that first ?” Zeke asked excitedly.
He chuckled. “Maybe. Let’s get you up to the house and settled in, then we will drift off to the office, Annie has missed you and after that we can do the tour.”
“Okay, Frank, but you can’t leave me in suspense for long.” Zeke looked at him, eyes big with mock disappointment.
Frank laughed again, looking forward to teasing his friend for a little while longer yet. He had been working on this little surprise for some time and Zeke was going to be absolutely stomped. He also reckoned it would help him over his loss of Ship, Zirkos and that little Pod AI he had grown so fond of.
They dropped off his gear in his usual room. He didn’t need anywhere to call home, he was never in one place long enough. Again, Frank thought he knew what the problem was and believed, or hoped, he now had the answer.
“Annie, how are you ?” Zeke gathered her up into his arms as though she was his mother and hugged her like she should be.
“I’m fine, my dear,” she said affectionately, not saying anything about it, but ruffling her fingers through his new fine gossamer hair.
“You are overdue for a break, young man. You need to get out and about and meet some young ladies, now you have some crowning glory to show you’re not an aged old fart, like Frank here,” she scolded him fondly.
“Old fart ? My apex !” Frank scoffed good naturedly.
Zeke shook his head miserably.“No girl is interested in an old silver-haired spaceman with baggage, Annie. You know what it’s like. They get your name, then tie you to the technology, then it’s a case of ‘Oh ! You’re that alien thingie with stuff growing in your body’, and then it’s, ‘Oh ! well ! Oh dear ! is that really the time... must dash !’ and they’re gone.”
They all laughed. It was Zeke’s standing joke from a single introduction that Annie had made, which had fallen flat as described, never to be repeated.
They chatted amiably for a bit, then Frank seeing that Zeke was getting restless, called for him to go take a visit of the factory.
Annie, who was savvy to the surprise that Frank was about to present, just patted his cheek and scolded him about not visiting enough, then let him walk off with Frank. She watched him go, the smile quickly replaced by concern in her eyes for both Frank and Zeke. She hoped that Frank had done the right thing. If he hadn’t...
***
“It’s the new Terrestrial model Fighter Class T-ship,” Frank boasted proudly.
“She will fly in atmosphere using the new ramjet version of our A-Grav system. This is the only ship that has been equipped with it and the plans for it aren’t even in circulation. Osbourne is keeping a very tight lid on it. The only other place the plans are kept are onboard. It’s our version of the Pattern Ship, but a much improved Earth version.”
Zeke was blown away. “Geesh ! Frank, you’ve outdone yourself. She. Is. Beautiful.”
And she was, without a doubt, the most beautiful ship that Zeke had ever seen. The TFC T-ship was covered in polished chrome. It was considerably larger than the one that Zirkos had built and from a knowledge of their weapons technology, Zeke could see the armament complement was huge.
“She is magnificent, Frank, can we go onboard ?”
“Well, you can. Nobody has been allowed onboard since Osbourne finished commissioning her.”
Zeke looked askeance, not quite understanding that Frank had just said.
Frank explained. “He’s the only person capable of doing so, he designed her and had the whole thing built to his specifications. The boy is a raging genius. Apparently, you have the only means with which to connect with the AI.”
“It’s got a terrestrial AI ?”
“Oh yes. It’s not as sophisticated as Pod, or Ship, but it does the job. We are fitting them to all new ships as a way of getting them space borne on a ‘fly by wire’ basis, to use an old defunct expression while we learn how to navigate in space.
It’s been nammed ‘Arty’, you just have to precede any command with its name and it will answer to your voice command, and only yours.”
“Arty, open boarding ramp,” Frank commanded.
“Access Denied.”
Frank looked at Zeke who understood the silent message.
“Arty, open boarding ramp, please,” Zeke commanded.
“Granted, Commander Callaghan.”
The boarding ramp appeared from a slot that materialised from the side of the ship. At the same time, a hole seemed to just evolve above it, until it got to a size allowing access for one, or may be two humans.
“Oh, that’s sweet !” Zeke said admiringly.
As they walked up the ramp and into the ship, the smell of newness was apparent and they entered a foyer preceding an open lounge screened by a clear curved wall that allowed you full view of the inner ship without immediate access.
There was a left and right turn from the opening and assuming the right was to the living quarters and engine room, Zeke did a left and headed for what he expected to see there, the control room.
He wasn’t disappointed.
A single cha
ir with a high back sat in the centre of the room, with multiple view-screens on the wall in front, and considerable space in front of the chair for consoles. Zeke correctly assumed that these were using the nanite technology that Ship had left behind for limited use, i.e. in case he needed them.
Frank was able to give him a run-down of the features, too numerous for Zeke to take in at a first sitting. He allowed Frank to show off his pride and joy. Although Osbourne had designed and built it, Zeke knew immediately that his good friend, Frank, had done this especially for him.
He wanted to give him this moment, so allowed him to take him around everything and explain all the new features. ‘Arty’ was surprisingly eloquent, limited in context, but certainly animated to the extent that its voice didn’t quite grate on your ears.
“Okay, Zeke, you have to take it for a test run. Just tell Arty what to do and it will do it,” Frank finished, obviously pleased to have got through the tour without making a pigs ear of the explanations.
Zeke turned and hugged him. It wasn’t something either was familiar with, but Zeke felt a handshake and a thank you just weren’t enough. He needed to reach out to this man who had seen his need and filled it.
They parted awkwardly, as men do who aren’t in the habit of showing their true feelings, but the gruffness in Frank’s voice showed it had affected him.
He headed for the main door and on his way out, gave Zeke his parting shot .
“There’s food and drink freshly laid in, so you don’t need to use the processor for a while. You are requested to test the limits of speed and navigation as well as the AI’s programming. So we are not expecting you back in anything less than a couple of weeks.” He chuckled.
then added. “But if you get into trouble we might have a problem. This is the only spaceworthy ship until the new war craft are completed. ‘Bon voyage’, Zeke,” and then he was gone.
Zeke smiled and walked back to the control room. He sat in the chair.
“Arty, take us into space !”
“Affirmative, Commander Callaghan,” Arty responded.
- 30 -
He had been in space for ten days now and the trials were working out well. Arty wasn’t Ship or Pod, but it did at least understand him and its voice was not quite a monotone. He was surprised how much he missed little Pod’s voice in his head.
They were now at the very edge of the solar system. It had been very much trial and error with learning to utilise the hyper drive. He had given Arty instructions and luckily fail-safes had been incorporated and activated when Arty just matter of factly stated :
“If we proceed with the last command we will materialise in the approximate centre of Jupiter’s mass. Therefore, please confirm your instruction by reciting the alphabet backwards. Thank you, Commander Callaghan.”
Zeke roared with laughter, recognising Osbourne’s sense of humour in there, amidst the AI’s programming.
After that, Zeke took three dimensional navigational mapping more seriously and, by the end of the trials, he was just about grasping the fundamentals. He now understood the ‘fly by wire’ principle that was being introduced in the war ships under construction. He reckoned that there were not many who would be stupid enough to recite the alphabet backwards. A great fail-safe, Zeke decided and carried on with his lessons. Arty was a great teacher.
The wormhole drive had not been activated yet. It was intended to be the next trial and Zeke was intensely nervous. He had access to all the maps left behind by Ship. He wasn’t worried about the possibility of landing in the middle of a planet, or a star. He was frightened of not being able to find his way back. It was this that really troubled him, he thought.
The porthole, that Zeke had enjoyed on Ship, was not something he wanted to try and establish with Arty, considering there were no spacesuits on board. Instead he managed to get Arty to line up all the view-screens and overlap the view of space. It was not the same, but good enough. Zeke began to feel more relaxed and at home. The feeling of open space under his feet was now something he relished.
Retiring to his cabin, he once again attempted to sleep. Something had been bothering him and it affected him more when he was trying to sleep than at other times. This time was no different as he tossed and turned without being able to focus on the problem. Some hours later, he finally drifted off into a troubled sleep. Arty was on watch and he would wake him if anything developed.
He was stationary, as if waiting for something to occur. It was nothing specific, just the feeling that events were about to unfold. A sense of expectation. He was just beginning to stir when the blackness came on him. It felt as if he was on the outside of the spacecraft instead of inside. He had somehow become the skin of the ship and he even felt the cold of the vacuum of space against his body.
Zeke realised he was not dreaming, but had no idea what was occurring. He could actually feel all of the sections of the hull as if it was part of him. The area where the propulsion motors sat was warmer, the side facing the sun was degrees warmer as the solar rays hit it. He felt the weapon tubes and sensed the cold dark interiors where no sunlight ever reached.
He wasn’t afraid, for some reason deep within him, he decided he was there because he needed to be. There was something he needed to see. He just needed to look for it. It was there. He looked outwards and was rewarded with a fantastic view.
It never ceased to amaze him how much the stars became bright orbs of light in space, the flatness of them from the Earth’s surface looking through the dust laden atmosphere was nothing compared to when seen like this.
From two dimensional twinkles to three dimensional sparkles, even photographs couldn’t catch the depth and intensity. Zeke continued to wonder what had brought him out here. He was sure his abilities didn’t extend to astral travelling.
His eyes warily scanned the heavens around him. They were looking for something specific. He could feel the tension building inside him. That sixth sense that he’d experienced in the Gulf and the Ferrazine coursing through his body was still honing him. He knew ‘something’ was out there.
He continued to scan. He didn’t know whether he was dreaming, or if this was real, but he wasn’t prepared to take the chance. He would persevere until he had something tangible to hang his concerns on, or until it disappeared like an old ship in the fog.
His attention finally settled into a wide monitoring pattern and he waited, knowing that whatever had set his alarm bells ringing would be coming soon. Zeke was mesmerised by the stars, their pattern seemed to slip into a dance, he followed it as if the universe was serenading him. It was then that he noticed the anomaly.
There it was.
A blinking orb, not regular, irregular.
It was there. Yes.
He could see it. He watched for a few minutes. It was... getting bigger.
He zoomed in on the image. Was it him, or the ships sensors ? He couldn’t tell. It became a large silver blob, no, a stick, no, a blob again. Ah ! it’s a SHIP.
It was out of control, falling through space bow over stern, in an irregular motion that alternated the view of it from this perspective. He changed perspective. Now it was approaching along his port side. He could now see it clearly. Its stern had the uniform T-shape that denoted ... ZIRKOS !
Zeke was suddenly back inside the ship on his grey plinth. He leapt up, his vision bringing him to full alert.
“Arty, full sensor scan NOW !”
“Working, Commander. Scanning.”
“Damn it ! Zirkos, what happened to you ?” he yelled as he ran into the control room.
‘SHIP ! Do you hear me ? SHIP !’ he mentally challenged across space in as loud a mental shout as he could manage.
“Arty, bring shields to maximum.”
“Affirmative.”
“Arty, show viewscreens, bow and stern.”
The images leapt into focus on the large screens in front of him. He tried to remember the star map from his vision, nothing s
eemed to look at all like it. Then he thought he saw a familiar pattern.
There. He could see that pattern from his vision.
“Arty, zoom in, bottom right quadrant, screen one.”
“I detect a metalloid object of a similar nature to this ship. It appears out of control,” Arty responded.
“Arty, hail it.”
“There is no response.”
“Object is closing with us and will be within tractor range in sixteen minutes.”
“Arty, prepare to capture craft with tractor beam as soon as in range, without adding damage,” he added.
He wasn’t confident that the tractor beam had been fully calibrated yet. A poor, or mistimed catch, could crush Ship.
“Arty, continue to hail the ship. Record coordinates, origin, direction and speed of distressed craft. Log for further analysis.”
“Acknowledged.”
Zeke could feel the moment when the tractor beam caught Ship. As the momentum pulled them out of alignment, he felt the slight shift as Arty pulled them back onto the previous course.
“Vessel secured.”
“Arty, scan vessel for life signs. Attempt contact with the ship.”
“There are no life signs. No onboard AI, no external signs of damage,” informed Arty.
“In addition, engines are cold, there is no life support, power reserves appear to be at zero.” The AI completed its analysis.
“Arty, secure Ship to our vessel. Prepare an emergency hatch connection. Do not open hatch until I command it.”
“Acknowledged.”
“Ship is secured.”
“Emergency hatch deployed. However, there is no corresponding response from the other vessel. We will be unable to access the ship.”
“Damnation ! What on earth has happened to you two ?” he screamed in frustration at the lifeless ship and his absent friends.
“I need Pod !” Zeke shouted to nobody in particular.